Difficulty finding clinical sites for online students?

This comment is not directly r/t to the thread's topic but I have been finding lately that when looking for specific courses for meaningful continuing education, the staff dev/education depts of local institutions are becoming very non-accommodating. They are quick to say that they only allow orgn employees, no outsiders, to attend their courses. One person I asked about this said she didn't understand why this is becoming a trend but she agreed with me that this policy puts out a poor impression to potential employees.

I have been looking into online programs and am very discouraged about the experiences of all the above posters. I also took a class once and needed to find a clinical site with preceptor and was unsuccessful. I certainly wish I would have known this before enrolling in that class. Next time anything like this comes up (highly unlikely for me) I will follow the lead of the poster who said that she had her clinical placement arranged before she started. Very smart thing to do!

It would also be a good idea to make this thread into a sticky and use it as a clearinghouse where people could network for these positions in their respective areas. If I found a willing orgn/preceptor would be glad to pass on the info. In order not to violate any TOS, this info could be posted leaving out specifics. "XYZ Clinic in Kansas City provides clin exp for ABC prog with DEF school. They can place up to 3 students per term." would be sufficient info to help. Just an idea. Good luck everyone.

I appreciate the information shared in this thread, because it helped me make my decision to attend a brick-and-mortar school. I completed my first graduate-level course this spring and start an FNP program in earnest this fall. I was all set to choose an online program due to the minimum 45-minute commute to attend any respectable MSN program in my area. However, I am now guaranteed a clinical spot two years from now, and I look forward to not having to worry about that component of my education.

Thanks again to everyone

Wise decision in my opinion. Can you just imagine putting in all the coursework ,then not being able to find places for clinical?( I bet a lot more places would precept if it were not for the malpractice issue... but that's another issue.)As I probably mentionned,I had received an acceptance to a reasonably prestigious online NP school, but they WOULD not discuss the issue of finding clinical placements. As I think I might have typed above (in a prior post) the director of the program said my question was "inappropriate".
Obviously I declined the acceptance.

I am a student in a BSN-MSN Nurse Practitioner Distance Learning Program. One needs to be careful when applying to online programs, and read their mandates for what they consider an appropriate clinical site and/or preceptor.

Some schools ONLY allow ARNP's, some will allow an MD or at least a portion of it to be supervised by an MD.

Some things I was told was that you can contact your local health departments or veteran's hospitals, they are usually accomodating. Another, is contact your physician or one of your health providers, and ask them if they know anyone who might be of help to you. Maybe someone at your church knows someone? Networking is not such a bad thing. Most schools do have some lists of approved clinical sites. Ask beforehand if you might view them.

One of the issues that has some of the places spooked, is there is a dual acceptance of malpractice insurance on the student. Hospitals unless pre-contracted are not usually insured, depending on your state's legislation to cover non-employees and their premiums skyrocket to accomodate others.

I was fortunate (mostly). I have a physician's group willing to precept me and willing to make phone calls on my behalf to get me into places they are not qualified to teach me to train me. I took a huge pay cut to go there, but in the end it will pay. They have hospital privileges, so I will be able to get entrance that way.

One may need to be creative, but that does not make it impossible. Online education actually works very well for me. I did my BSN this way, and it was a fabulous experience, and I am looking forward to doing my ARNP this way. Just starting out, so I will have to let you know how that goes. Doesn't hurt that I have been a nurse forever, and have made positive contacts all over. I am especially blessed.

Hope this helps even a little. Good luck.

Thank-you for alerting me to this problem. I am also one of the ones considering a online NP program (gerontological)...possibly at University of Missouri Columbia. I do not plan to start until Fall 2008 but I think I will begin looking for clinical sites now. I work for the VA so I will begin my search there...and branch out from there.

Do most online MSN/FNP programs require your preceptor to be a Nurse Practitioner, or do most permit the preceptor to be an MD? Anyone know? This is something I hadn't considered....

Yes, some schools require only ARNP's for training. You will have to ask your intended choice of schools what their requirements are. It is better to know this prior.

Good luck!

My school states that students may choose MD/DO/FNP/PA for the first semester (Health Assessment), but after that it must be MD/DO/FNP for a FNP program.

My personal recommendation is to go with a NP. While the MD/DO will have extensive knowledge and experience in a clinical setting, they really do look at patient care in a slightly different perspective. And while the two docs I worked with were pro-NP, there was still a slight paternal-child relationship between the two of us. I never felt like I fit into the setting. Thankfully, I have a wonderful FNP for my next semester of clinicals already lined up, and plan on utilizing NPs & PAs for the remainder of my program.

Hope this helps!

I was going to start a new thread on this very subject, but I'll bump this older thread instead.

I attended an orientation today for the NP program I am going to attend, and I was dismayed to learn that students in this program are required to find their own preceptors. The program is essentially entirely on-line, although it is a brick-and-mortar state university (same school I got my bsn from).

Along with the concerns raised in this thread regarding scrambling to get a preceptor/site, I have another worry related to this. I am concerned about the preceptor not being having been "vetted" in any way regarding educating an NP student. I would imagine that the situation would be better if the preceptors had an existing relationship with the school, felt they had a "stake" in the students and the program, etc.

I'm sure the overwhelming majority of those who agree to precept are skilled and educated professionals. However, does an agreement to precept a student maximise the clinical educational opportunity of the student? It was stated in the orientation that those professionals who agree to precept will be contacted by the school, a precepting handbook provided, a site visit done (though at what point the visit would occur was unclear). But how much time and effort into these matters can an otherwise undoubtably busy MD/NP put into designing a productive experience for the student?

I appreciate how much individual initiative and responsibility are needed from the student in this situation, i.e. the experience will not be "handed" to the student, and the student will need to aggressively seek out opportunities for learning, clearly state an interest in maximizing the clinical experience, study on one's own to be prepared for those opportunities, etc. It just seems so...disorganised and capricious. I guess I would prefer a bit more rigidity, both in experiences offered and student expectations.

Am I right to be concerned? Obviously this system is not uncommon in msn/np education especially with the large number of on-line programs in existence. Is it more successful than not?

Greatly appreciate the opinions and experiences of others on this board, especially those that have been in this situation.